The Use of Technology for Children with Down Syndrome in Saudi Arabia - Research Paper Example

Many teachers understand the benefits of using technology to support children with DS and their views are supported by studies conducted in the past in the same area as presented in extant literature. The key challenges to using technology as identified by the teachers include lack of resources such as computers, lack of software designed in Arabic, and lack of proper training for teachers to enable them to handle children with DS in a better way. Recommendations are discussed.

INTRODUCTION
Overview
This research was conducted to determine the extent of use or technology to support the learning needs of children with DS in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The research was necessitated by the lack of information about the use of technology to assist learners with DS in the kingdom. The research was therefore aimed at sealing this gap by investigating the situation in two schools in KSA which offer education to children with DS. Survey questionnaires were used to collect information from teachers in these schools regarding the use of technology in their work.

The problem of the Study
Although typically educators have used a range of teaching methods and strategies such as pacing, task analysis, and repetition to support the learning of children with DS, the use of computer technology now provides more options for teachers. The use of computer-assisted technology to support the learning of students with special needs including DS has grown exponentially in the last two decades (Klein, Cook & Richardson-Gibbs, 2001, pp. 26–27; Black & Wood, 2003a).

Despite this development, some developing countries are yet to embrace technology use for students with special learning needs. The KSA Ministry of Education has put in place policies and resources to support the education of children with special needs. However, Al rubies (2010) reports that there is a lack of comprehensive information that focuses on the needs and rights of children with special needs in KSA, including the use of technology.